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Hello from Okinawa, Japan!

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I've recently moved to Okinawa and had a reinvigoration to get back into Freshwater aquariums. I thought it would be fun and better than having a dog or a cat that could tear up GOV housing. However, trying to read labels and buy things is quite difficult. Everything is in Japanese and little English.

I'm here to get new information on aquariums and things that have changed from when i last kept a 10 gallon tank some 10 years or so ago.

Japan... the home of Amano. Some excellent kit on the market there. And Okinawa is southern enough that you may even be able to catch fish yourself.

Anything wrong? Not really except for the fact that 5 gallons is already a bit smallish for mollies, that cories don't belong as single fish and not on gravel and that 3 neons is too small a group. Oh, and "Pleco (not sure specific kind)" is usually some kind of tankbuster. Total sum is such that I'd be very surprised if you can keep your nitrates under 30.

Well, like i said, i'm a noob and i did not think this through all the way. I'm actually surprised that my fish are still alive. I've had one or two die off here and there, but somehow, the molly fry are still alive and growing.

The Pleco is a tiger pleco L002. That is the closest i can get to comparing mine to a picture. It's close.

I don't have any test kits besides a 6 in 1 test strip, which i realized is not adequate for the setup. Also, my tank is 506% overstocked. I found a website on here AqAdvisor and that site suggested exactly what you said. I'm looking for an excuse to upgrade and i realize now, it's more of a necessity than an excuse. I'm going to post in the beginners board my current setup in it's entirety and what else i have to see what advice i can get to try to utelize what i've got for a 20 or 30 gallon tank.

I'm doing this poorly and i feel like i'm torturing the fish in these horrible conditions. I used to have 4 neons but one died shortly after adding three more. I never knew the corry cats needed to be in groups.

Off to do some research. Hopefully i can find a gravel cleaner at the pet store tomorrow. When i do a water change, the new water agitates the gravel and a lot of debris starts to float...

Debris isn't that bad. If you can't get a cleaner get some air hose 4 or 6mm is ideal for cleaning smaller tanks. A brisk circular motion with a finger just over the gravel will bring up particles which you can syphon away.

I'm going to make you even more unhappy I'm afraid. L002 requires wood fiber for it's digestion and really does a lot better in a shaded tank with a big lump of wood. It's also not able to sustain itself on leftover fish food and incidental bits of algae.

If you've got your current stock for 6 weeks or more and you haven't done any radical filter maintenance you have a good load of bacteria. I'd say see about finding a bigger tank if possible and a bigger filter and transfer the contents of this one. Alternatively, return some fish. You could keep the mollies, maybe even the neons if you can do 25% changes twice a week but the pleco and the cory really are not going to be happy and healthy fish

Debris isn't that bad. If you can't get a cleaner get some air hose 4 or 6mm is ideal for cleaning smaller tanks. A brisk circular motion with a finger just over the gravel will bring up particles which you can syphon away.

I'm going to make you even more unhappy I'm afraid. L002 requires wood fiber for it's digestion and really does a lot better in a shaded tank with a big lump of wood. It's also not able to sustain itself on leftover fish food and incidental bits of algae.

If you've got your current stock for 6 weeks or more and you haven't done any radical filter maintenance you have a good load of bacteria. I'd say see about finding a bigger tank if possible and a bigger filter and transfer the contents of this one. Alternatively, return some fish. You could keep the mollies, maybe even the neons if you can do 25% changes twice a week but the pleco and the cory really are not going to be happy and healthy fish

Sorry to welcome you this way but you did ask for feedback

I do appreciate the feedback. I've realized that small was a bad choice.

What i want to do is get a 30 gallon tank from the local store. Use the water that is already established in the current tank along with the gravel. Then fill up the tank with new treated water. I was going to use the bio-wheel 100B filter as well as the tetra auto power filter (AX30) on the opposite end of the tank as well to have adequate filtration. Since whatever plant i have in there is slowly dying off, i was going to buy a few amazon sword and place them in a group of three in one of the back corners. I was also going to heed your advice and get two more corys and another tetra and molly. Then if there is anything at the local store that i need but can't find, i will order what i need.

I'm about to post my other article now. I really do appreciate the advice!

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Once you learn to quit, it becomes a habit. -Vince Lombardi
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See my profile for my tanks and what fish I keep